“国值论”1丨经济学人双语精读笔记
2018-06-28 09:12阅读：
“国值论” 1丨经济学人双语精读笔记
原创： Sesame 金融英语翻译社 2018-06-21
伙伴们端午节快乐~ 吃粽子了没？之前忙搬家的事公号停更了几天，跟大家说声抱歉。
最新一期的经济学人电子版与音频已经更新，公号对话框回复eco领取。
今天我们接着经济学人双语精读的内容，新增了回忆测试部分，伙伴们读完原文，学完精读笔记之后，自己动手写一写后面的测试题以检测自己的学习效果，如果输出效果不佳，证明你看过的东西并没有完全内化成自己的，自己可能还是会用，那一定要静下心来回头再复习一遍，直到都能答对为止~
本篇文章译文出自经济学人商论，蓝字部分为本篇精读笔记讲解部分，看笔记之前先阅读原文，对原文有个整体把握，再进行超精读学习。
原文阅读
Free exchange
The worth of nations
Economists sometimes fail to measure what matters most. The
fourth in our series on the profession’s shortcomings
A CYNIC, says one of Oscar Wilde’s characters, is a man who
knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. But, as
philosophers have long known, assigning values to things or
situations is fraught. Like the cynic, economists often assume that
prices are all anyone needs to know. T
his biases many of their conclusions, and limits their relevance to
some of the most serious issues facing humanity.
The problem of value has lurked in the background ever since
the dismal science’s origins. Around the time Adam Smith published
his “Wealth of Nations”, Jeremy Bentham laid out the basis of a
utilitarian approach, in which “it is the greatest happiness of the
greatest number that is the measure of right and wrong”. In the
late 19th century Alfred Marshall declared the correct focus of
economics to be the “attainment and…use of material requisites of
well-being”. Or, as his student, Arthur Pigou, put it, “that part
of social welfare that can be brought directly or indirectly into
relation with the measuring rod of money”.
Equating money with value is in many cases a necessary
expedient. People make transactions with money, of one form or
another, rather than “utility” or happiness. But even if economists
often have no choice but to judge outcomes in terms of who ends up
with how many dollars, they can pay more attention to the way
focusing on “material well-being”, as determined by the “measuring
rod of money”, influences and constrains their work.
The measuring rod itself often causes trouble. Not every dollar is
of equal value, for instance. You might think that if two
economists were forced to bid on an apple, the winner would desire
the apple more and the auction would thereby have found the best,
welfare-maximising use for the apple. But the evidence suggests
that money has diminishing marginal value: the more you have, the
less you value an extra dollar. The winner might therefore end up
with the apple not because it will bring him more joy, but because
his greater wealth means that his bid is less of a sacrifice.
Economists are aware of this problem. It features, for example, in
debates about the link between income and happiness across
countries. But the profession is surprisingly casual about its
potential implications: for example, that as inequality rises, the
price mechanism may do a worse job of allocating resources.
Equating dollar costs with value misleads in other ways. That
economic statistics such as GDP are flawed is not news. In a speech
in 1968 Robert Kennedy complained that measures of output include
spending on cigarette advertisements, napalm and the like, while
omitting the quality of children’s health and education. Despite
efforts to improve such statistics, these problems remain. A dollar
spent on financial services or a pricey medical test counts towards
GDP whether or not it contributes to human welfare. Social costs
such as pollution are omitted. Economists try to take account of
such costs in other contexts, for example when assessing the harms
caused by climate change. Yet even then they often focus on how
environmental change will affect measurable production and neglect
outcomes that cannot easily be set against the measuring rod.
Economists also generally ignore the value of non-market activity,
like unpaid work. By one estimate, including unpaid work in
American GDP in 2010 would have raised its value by 26% (and drawn
a very different picture of the contributions of different
demographic groups). As Diane Coyle of Cambridge University has
argued, the decision to exclude unpaid work may reflect the value
judgments of the (mostly male) officials who first ran statistical
agencies. But it seems likely that economists today still treat
things which cannot easily be measured as if they matter
less.
Economists are at their least useful when a measuring stick should
not be used at all. They have been known to calculate, for example,
the financial gains from achieving gender equality. But gender
equality has an intrinsic value, regardless of its impact on GDP.
Similarly, species loss and forced mass migration impose psychic
costs that resist dollar valuation but are nonetheless important
aspects of the threat from climate change.
Such quandaries might suggest that ethical issues should be left to
other social scientists. But that division of labour would be
untenable. Indeed, economists often work on the basis that tangible
costs and benefits outweigh subjective values. Alvin Roth, for
example, suggests that moral qualms about “repugnant transactions”
(such as trading in human organs) should be swept aside in order to
realise the welfare gains that a market in organs would generate.
Perhaps so, but to draw that conclusion while dismissing such
concerns, rather than treating them as principles which might also
contribute to human well-being, is inappropriate. Further, the very
act of pulling out the measuring rod alters our sense of value.
Though the size of the effect is disputed, psychological research
suggests that nudging people to think in terms of money when they
make a choice encourages a “businesslike mindset” that is less
trusting and generous. Expanding the reach of markets is not just a
way to satisfy preferences more efficiently. Rather, it favours
market-oriented values over others.
The Pharrell Williams school
Some economists advocate the creation and use of broader measures
of well-being. Several organisations, including the European
Commission and the World Bank, now publish data series presenting a
more comprehensive picture of social health. But the costs of the
standard approach are growing. Price is a poor measure of the value
of digital goods and services, which are often paid for by giving
access to data. Technological progress promises to create ever more
situations in which ethical considerations conflict with narrowly
material ones. The question of how to increase well-being in such a
world deserves greater attention.
精读笔记 Free exchange
自由交流
The worth of nations
“国值论”
Economists sometimes fail to measure what matters most. The fourth
in our series on the profession’s shortcomings
经济学家有时无法衡量那些最重要的事物的价值——经济学的不足系列之四
A CYNIC, says one of Oscar Wilde’s characters, is a man who knows
the price of everything and the value of nothing.
But, as philosophers have long known, assigning
values to things or situations is fraught. Like the
cynic, economists often assume that prices are all anyone needs to
know. This biases many of their conclusions, and
limits their relevance to some of the most serious issues facing
humanity.
王尔德笔下的一个人物说过这么一句话：愤世嫉俗者知道万物的价格，对价值却一无所知。但是，正如哲学家们早就知道的那样，确定事物或事态的价值是件伤脑筋的事情。和愤世嫉俗者一样，经济学家常认为大家只需知道价格就行了。这导致他们的很多结论有失偏颇，也限制了他们在人类面对一些最重要的问题时所能发挥的作用。
【翻译学习】但是，正如哲学家们早就知道的那样，确定事物或事态的价值是件伤脑筋的事情。But,
as philosophers have long known, assigning values to things or
situations is fraught.
fraught [fr:t]
adj. 担心的，忧虑的；充满…的
【写作借鉴】正如某人早知道的那样 as sb has/have long
known,……
【小词活用】assign values to sth
确定某物的价值，赋予某物价值
assign比较常见的是“分配，委派”的意思，这里的assign做“赋予，给予”的意思 If you assign a
particular function or value to someone or something, you say they
have it.
e.g. Under Mr. Harel's system, each business must
assign a value to each job.
根据哈雷尔先生的体系，每个企业必须赋予每份工作一定的价值。
【翻译学习】This biases
many of their conclusions, and limits their
relevance to some of the most serious issues facing
humanity.这导致他们的很多结论有失偏颇，也限制了他们在人类面对一些最重要的问题时所能发挥的作用。
这句话在翻译时用到了词性转化和增译，biase在翻译时进行了动词名词化，并增译了“导致”使其更符合中文表达习惯
issues facing humanity 翻译成“人类所面对的一些问题”
The problem of value has lurked in
the background ever since the dismal
science’s origins. Around the time Adam Smith
published his “Wealth of Nations”, Jeremy Bentham
laid out the basis of a utilitarian
approach, in which “it is the greatest happiness of the greatest
number that is the measure of right and wrong”. In the late 19th
century Alfred Marshall declared the correct focus of economics to
be the “attainment and…use of material requisites
of well-being”. Or, as his student, Arthur Pigou,
put it, “that part of social welfare that can be brought directly
or indirectly into relation with the measuring rod of money”.
自经济学这门“沉闷的科学”起源以来，价值的难题就一直潜藏其中。在亚当·斯密发表《国富论》的前后，杰里米·边沁（Jeremy
Bentham）奠定了功利主义理论的基础，该理论主张“以绝大多数人的最大幸福作为判断是非的标准”。19世纪末，阿尔弗雷德·马歇尔（Alfred
Marshall）宣称，经济学应该关注的是“对保障安乐的物质必需品的获取和使用”。或者，用他的学生亚瑟·庇古（Arthur
Pigou）的话来说，是“能够直接或间接地用货币尺度来衡量的那部分社会福利”。
【写作借鉴】the problem of……has
lurked in the background ever
since……
自……以来，……问题就一直潜藏其中/存在。
【词组积累】lay out the basis of 奠定……的基础
【词汇积累】dismal
/'dzm()l/
adj. 凄凉的，忧郁的；阴沉的，沉闷的；可怕的
n. 低落的情绪
requisite ['rekwizit]
adj. 必备的，必不可少的；需要的
n. 必需品
Equating money with
value is in many cases a necessary expedient. People
make transactions with money, of one form or another, rather than
“utility” or happiness. But even if economists often have no choice
but to judge outcomes in terms of who ends up with how many
dollars, they can pay more attention to the way focusing on
“material well-being”, as determined by the “measuring rod of
money”, influences and constrains their work.
很多情况下，将货币等同于价值是迫不得已的权宜之计。人们用不同形式的货币，而不是根据“效用”或幸福感进行交易。但就算经济学家常常别无选择而只能够通过谁最终得到多少钱来判断结果，他们还是可以对一个问题多些关注——只盯着由“货币尺度”判定的“物质福利”如何影响并束缚了他们的工作。
【词组积累】【写作借鉴】equate A with B
将A等同于B
【词汇积累】expedient
[ik'spi:dint]
adj. 权宜的；方便的；有利的
n. 权宜之计；应急手段
【词组积累】have no choice but to……
别无选择，只能……
judge outcomes in terms of
以……来判断结果
学习效果检测 一、词汇部分
看下列中英文释义，写出相应的词汇：
1.
adj. 担心的，忧虑的；充满…的
marked by distress；filled with or attended with
2.
adj. 凄凉的，忧郁的；阴沉的，沉闷的；可怕的
n. 低落的情绪
sth is bad in a sad or depressing way; sth is sad and depressing,
especially in appearance.
3.
adj. 必备的，必不可少的；需要的
n. 必需品
something that is necessary for a particular purpose;anything
indispensable
4.
adj. 权宜的；方便的；有利的
n. 权宜之计；应急手段
an action that produces an immediate result or solution to a
problem, even though it may not be fair or honest
二、翻译与写作部分
1. 但是，正如哲学家们早就知道的那样，确定事物或事态的价值是件伤脑筋的事情。
2. 保险商早就知道，投保的人更有可能去冒险。
3. 这导致他们的很多结论有失偏颇，也限制了他们在人类面对一些最重要的问题时所能发挥的作用。
4. 自经济学这门“沉闷的科学”起源以来，价值的难题就一直潜藏其中。
5. 很多情况下，将货币等同于价值是迫不得已的权宜之计。
6. 他们将别无选择，只能向中国寻求和解。
自己做完再看答案哦~
答案 一、词汇部分：
1. fraught 2. dismal 3. requisite 4.
expedient
二、翻译与写作部分：
1. But, as philosophers have long
known, assigning values to things or situations is
fraught.
2. Insurers have long known
that people who buy insurance are more likely to take
risks.
3. This biases many of their
conclusions, and limits their relevance to
some of the most serious issues facing humanity.
4. The problem of value has lurked
in the background ever since the
dismal science’s origins.
5. Equating money
with value is in many cases a
necessary expedient.
6. They would have no choice but to
find accommodation with China.
如果不会的很多，记得返回去再学一遍哦~
